Mnemic - Mechanical Spin Phenomena
- Released: 2003
- Label: Nuclear Blast
- Rating:
When I first put this disc in, I thought I accidentally triggered a Fear Factory CD in my collection. Once the vocals kicked in, I thought it somehow switched to Soilwork. Track two starts; bam it’s Machine Head…and maybe Strapping Young Lad on track three. Is this a fuckin’ sampler CD or a young band’s debut album?
Denmark’s Mnemic are a musical amalgam of modern day metal. If you heard “DB’XX’D,” you’d almost swear it was a new Fear Factory song. These guys have crammed so many of their influences into their sound on Mechanical Spin Phenomena, that they barely have an identity of their own.
The sad thing is, the band is excellent. The production is killer too, but all the instruments sound exactly like Fear Factory, right down to the mechanical double-bass drums, and razor-sharp guitar tone. I can even hear some of the same vocal effects that Burton C. Bell has used on nearly every Fear Factory album. If Mnemic was a cover band, they would sell out a lot of bars in Denmark. But this ain’t no cover band scene. This is the world of metal, and this band is signed to Nuclear Blast Records; a label I normally hold in high regard for signing great, original acts.
As great as Mnemic sounds, it’s someone else’s sound that they’re using. There is almost no originality here. I’m truly surprised these guys got signed at all, but especially by Nuclear Blast. Mechanical Spin Phenomena is a serious letdown in my book, but Mnemic has the potential to be a great band… if they can just find their own sound.
Link: mnemic.com
Reverend Sick | 09/10/2003